The fixation and/or stabilization of bones and/or bone fragments is/are commonly required by orthopedic surgeons to treat injuries such as fractures or disease. To accomplish this, the bones/bone fragments can be joined by a rod, plate or the like, which is fixed to the bones/bone fragments via fasteners such as screws, pins or the like. The connection by the rod(s), plate(s) or the like maintains the bones/bone fragments in a desired orientation and/or at desired spacings, positions, etc.
In spinal surgery, it is often necessary to secure various implants to the vertebrae and interconnect the vertebrae by attaching one or more rods or plates to the implants. Due to the complex curvature of the spine, as well as irregularities of the same that often need to be treated, it is often difficult to align a rod or plate with all of the implants/fasteners fixed to the various vertebrae to be connected via the rod or plate. In some surgeries, it is necessary to span multiple vertebrae of the spine with rods that provide stabilizing forces to the vertebrae to help maintain the desired orientations of the vertebrae to maintain a desired curvature in the spine. In these instances, repositioning of multiple vertebrae is often required, often by repositioning relative to multiple planes, in order to achieve the desired alignment of the vertebrae and correct the curvature of the spine/deformity being treated.
There is a need for instruments, assemblies and procedures to facilitate such complex realignment procedures. There is a need for instrument, assemblies and methods that not only can perform these complex procedures, but which also facilitate the ability to more readily attach the instruments when the vertebrae are out of alignment and where it would be otherwise difficult or impossible, using conventional instrumentation to interconnect instrumentation being used because of extreme malalignment of the vertebrae being treated.